This invention relates generally to a heatable turntable of the Lazy Susan type for supporting articles such as food-stuffs and other articles to be warmed on the turntable.
Turntables of this general type are basically known as having a support base to which a deck is mounted for rotation about the central axis of the deck. The turntable is utilized principally on tables such that all those seated at the table can have access to different ingredients which are placed on the turntable deck, typically known as a Lazy Susan. However, it would be desirable to provide for the heating or warming of the articles supported on the rotating deck such that the articles, such as food, can be kept hot while being served.
Several heatable turntables are known and basically comprise electrically heated pads mounted on rotating discs. However, conventional heatable turntables suffer from several drawbacks. First, air flow is often restricted between the dish placed on the heating pad and the deck. Such a restriction results in an undesirable heat build-up beneath the dish as well as inconsistent heat transfer between the pad and those portions of the dish not contacting the pad.
Also, the heating pads are not reliable since the resistor wires located therein often become disconnected and/or displaced. Disconnected resistor wires both create safety hazards such as potential electrical shocks and fire causing sparks and can result in termination of the heating operation. Displaced resistor wires result in an undesired alteration of the heating pattern and ultimately result in unevenly warmed food. In addition, conventional heating pads are often cumbersome and occupy unnecessary amounts of space, thereby detracting from both the space efficiency and aesthetic qualities of the turntable.
In addition, conventional heating pads often fail to provide for intimate contact between the warming plate and the resistance wires, thereby wasting energy as the wires heat intermediate air. Also, conventional turntables employ a universal thermostat. During operation, an occupied thermal pad is cooled as it warms a dish while an unoccupied thermal pad is cooled to a much lesser degree as it exchanges heat with the air. Thus, if a universal temperature control is provided, the unoccupied thermal pad will be heated above the predetermined warming temperature as the occupied pad or pads is/are heated to the warming temperature, thereby wasting energy. The occupied pad(s) will accordingly be underheated and the unoccupied pad(s) overheated.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a heatable turntable which avoids heat build-up.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a heatable turntable which evenly and consistently warms a dish.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a reliable, safe heating mechanism for a heatable turntable.
It is yet another object of the present invention to minimize space requirements of the various elements of a heatable turntable.
It is a still further object of the present invention to accomplish the foregoing objects while improving the visual presentation of the heatable turntable to the user.
Additional objects are apparent from the specification and drawings which follow.